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AX 


ADDRESS 


BS£IVERSB  IN  CLr^TON,  LOUXSZAHiL, 


ON 


^UJrJO.iJ*9    JlUJyE   24itfc, 

1  846, 

6  ■. 

^                                      AND   AGAIN  ON 

• 

3®S3SD4i'29  3l9a^  asaiOo  23^9 


AT    THE    REQUEST  OF  THE 


CLIITOI  TEMPERAICE  SOCIETY, 


BY  JOHi\  RUSSE1>L. 

^  ^ „. 

A>k   miNTED  AT  THE  ^'LOVISIAXA  Ft.ORIDIAN»'  OFFtCE^ 


Clinton,  July  20th  1846. 
Jo\n  Rutsell,  Esq., 

DiAR  SiR : — Pursuant  to  a  Resolution  adopted  by  the  Clinton  Tem- 
paranco  Society,  the  undersigned  Committee  were  appointed  to  request 
of  you  a  copy  of  jour  Address  for  publication. 

rlea^ed  at  the  able  and  instructive  manner  in  which  you  have  discharg- 
ed the  taskalloUed  to  you,  the  members  of  this  association,  through  the 
undersigned  Commiftee,  desire  to  thank  you  in  the  most  cordial  terms, 
for  a  discourse  which  has  elicited  universal  approbation.  As  many  have 
expressed  a  desire  to  peruse  it  at  their  leisure,  will  you  so  far  gratify  them 
and  the  Society  as  to  consent  to  its  publication  in  pamphlet  form — a  form 
which  will  render  it  both  convenient  and  durable? 
We  are  very  respectfully, 
•  Your  obedient  servants, 

JOHN  E.  KING, 
W.  VV.  CHAPMAN, 
R.  H.  PATRICK. 


Clinton  Academy,  La.  ,  July  21st,  1846. 
John  L.  King,  Esq. ,  W.  W.  Chapman,  Esq.,  R.  H.  Patrick,  Esq., 

Gentlemen: — I  had  the  honor  of  receiving,  yesterday, your  notf?, 
asking,  in  behalf  of  the  Clinton  Temperance  Society,  a  copy  of  my  Ad- 
dress, for  publication.  « 

I  should  be  utterly  insensible  did  I  not  feel,  deeply  feel,  the  honor  thus 
conferreu  upon  me.  The  approbation  of  an  audience  so  highly  intellec- 
tual as  that  which  honored  me  with  their  attendance,  would  be  an  amplo 
reward  for  merits  much  higher  than  I  dare  claim.  I  shall  ever  remember, 
vith  heart-felt  gratification,  not  only  the  approbation  of  that  audience, 
out  also  the  very  kind  and  flattering  terms  in  which  their  wishes  have  been 
convened  to  me,  by  a  committee,  one  of  which,  at  least  is  distinguished 
as  an  Orator  of  the  highest  grade.  I  place  a  copy  of  my  Address  at  your 
disposal,  • 

Accept,  Gentlemen,  for  the  Society  which  you  represent,  and  for  your- 
f  elTce  individually  thy  expression  of  ray  esteem. 


Respectfully, 


J.   RUSSELL. 


AN  ADDRESS 

Delivered  at  Clinton,  Louisiana,  on  Sunday,  June  24th,  1846,  and 
again  on  Sunday,  July  19th,  1846,  at  the  request  of  the  Clinton 
Temperance  Society, 

BY  JOHN_RUSSELL. 

Fellow  Citizens  : — I  am  aware  that  nearly  all  who  address  the  public 
on  the  subject  of  temperance,  pu  rsue,  invariably,  one  and  the  same  courss. 
They  portray, in  glowing  colors,  the  evils  that  flow  from  intemperance, 
and  tbeu  appeal  to  their  audience  to  abstain  from  the  use  of  all  intoxica- 
^ting  drinks. 

This  course,  though  sanctioned  by  universal  custom,  I  shall  not  pursue, 
f<.r  I  deem  it  of  no  avail. 

He  who  imagines  that  eloquent  appeals  from  a  temperance  lecturer  will 
induce  the  army  of  drunkards  to  abandon  their  cups — that  the  fiery  tor- 
rent of  alcohol  that  is  sending  desolation  over  our  land  can  be  stayed  in 
its  career  of  woe  and  death,  by  eloquence — he  that  expects  this,  is  doomed 
to  disappointment.    Leviathan  is  not  thus  tamed 

Every  day  of  his  life,  the  drunkard  resists  appeals  ten-fold  more  power- 
ful than  the  most  eloqueut  temperance  lecturer  ever  uttered.  He  sees  ths 
pale,  haggard,  emaciated  features  of  the  wife  whom  he  swore  on  the  altar 
of  God  to  protect  and  cherish.  He  remembers  that  a  few  years  since, 
when  she  gave  him  her  hand,  and  with  it,  the  rich  treasure  of  her  love, 
she  was  radiant  with  beauty  and  hope.  He  sees  the  wrinkles  which  suf- 
Jering,  and  not^ear*  have  traced  upon  her  brow,  and  feels  that  his  intem- 
perance has  driven  deep  the  burning  plow-share  of  sorrow  over  her  youth- 
ful forehead.  He  knows  that  he  is  fast  hurrying  her  to  an  untimely  grave. 
Marked  you  that  appealing  look  of  hopeless  agony  which  the  injured 
wife  cast  upon  her  drunken  h  usband  1  If  that  silent  but  eloquent  look  has 
not  power  to  move  him,  do  you  believe  that  he  can  be  moved  by  the  tem- 
perance lecturer? 

Day  by  day  the  drunkard  sees  that  he  is  reducing  to  wretchedness  and 
ruin  the  pratling  child  that  climbs  his  kuee  and  addresses  him  by  the  sa- 
cred name  of /afAer — a  name  that  should  send  a  thrill  to  every  virtuous 
heart.  If  the  beggary — and  what  is  far  worse,  the  moral  degradation  and 
death  of  his  own  chili,  can  not  induce  him  to  abandon  the  intoxicating 
cup — would  the  eloquence  of  even  a  Demosthenes? 

He  turns  his  eye  back  upon  himself.  He  sees  that  all  the  fond  expecta  - 
tions  of  parents  and  friends  once  so  ardently  cherished,  have  been  blasted 
by  his  intemperance.  From  the  dark  and  fathomless  abyss  in  which  bis 
prospects  of  usefulness  and  respectability  lie  entombed,  hope  itself  sends 
back  no  echo.  Over  his  future  destiny  hangs  a  gloom  more  app  iliing  than 
that  which  shrouds  the  sepulchre.  When  all  these  appeals  fail  to  move, 
the  drunkard,  in  vain  will  you  attempt  to  move  him  by  a  temperance 
lecture. 

3 


461509 


4 

♦ 

Equally  useless  is  it  to  tell  the  public  that  if  all  will  abandon  at  once  and 
forever,  the  use  of  every  thing  that  can  intoxicate,  there  veill  be  no  more 
intemperance.  That  remedy  for  drunkeness  is,  indeed  a  sure  one,  but  it 
is  one  which  the  whole  world  has  known  for  centuries — every  drunkard 
knows  that  if  he  would  abandon  the  use  of  all  intoxicating  drinks  he 
would  become  a  sober  and  respectable  man.  And  yet  of  what  use  is  it  to. 
tell  them  of  this?  You  might  with  as  much  hope  of  success  say  to  a  man 
with  a  burning  fever,  whose  blood  is  boiling  like  lava  in  the  glowing 
cavernsof  his  heart — "Sir,  if  you  will  only  become  coo/,  you  will  have  no 
fever."  Drunkenness  is  a  disease  that  binds  fast  in  its  rentorseless  chains 
both  the  moral  and  physical  nature  of  man.  When  this  disease  is  once 
fully  seated,  it  is  almost  impossible  to  reclaim  the  drunkard,  for  he  has  lost 
the  will  to  refrain.  I  repeat — intemperance  is  a  disease  that  deprives  its 
victims  of  the  will  to  refrain.  You  might  almost  as  well  attempt  to  stay 
the  burning  thunder-bolt,  mid-volley  as  to  stop  the  confirmed  drunkard  in 
bis  career  of  ruin  and  death. 

I  am  aware  that  some  few  habitual  drunkards  may  have  been  reformed, 
but  their  number  is  so  small  that  they  are  harcMy  a  drop  in  the  bucket 
cdfcpared  with  the  thousands  that  every  year  desceiMi  into  the  drunkards 
grave. 

It  must  be  evident  to  every  reflecting^  mind,  that  if  we  expect  ever  to 
redeem  our  country  from  the  scourge  of  intemperance,  we  must  adopt 
some  means  more  powerful  than  mere  appeals  however  eloquent,  to  the 
inebriate.  It  is  equally  useless  to  tell  them  to  refrain  from  the  use  of 
intoxicating  drinks.  We  must  discover  a  remedy  that  will  not  only  be 
effectual — but  a  remedy  that  willbe  adopted.  It  is  the  extreme  of  folly 
to  tell  the  world  a  sure  and  safe  remedy  lor  intemperance  when  experience 
proves  that  the  remedy  will  not  be  adopted. 

To  render  this  subject  more  intelligible:  Suppose  a  philosopher  shoukl 
tell  the  peopJe  of  New  Orleans  that  if  they  will  abandon  their  lovely  city 
and  emigrate  to  the  frozen  regions  of  the  north  they  will  be  certain  of 
escaping  from  the  Yellow  Fever  that  sometimes  sends  the  death-cart  with 
alarming  frequency  along  their  streets.  This  would  indeed  be  proposing 
to  them  a  sure  safe-guard  from  that  pestilence — but  such  a  safe-guard  as 
experience  shows  none  would  adopt.  But  suppose  that  he  had  examined 
the  cause  of  yellow  fever — the  predisposing  cause,  antl  should  say  to  them 
with  truth  :  You  are  visited  by  that  deadly  pestilence  because  you  breathe 
an  atmosphere  that  is  loaded  with  disease  and  death.  It  isoidy  the  strong- 
est constitution  that  can  resist  the  contagion  in  which  joulive.  lean 
point  out  to  you  the  means  by  which  yon  can  purify  the  air  of  the  deadly 
miasma  that  surrounds  you,  and  by  sending  lile  and  health  upon  every 
breeze  that  fans  you,  banish  forever  the  scourge  that  desolates  your  city. 
VVould  not  such  a  man  deserve  their  gratitude,  for  he  would  not  only  point 
out  a  sure  remedy,  but  the  only  remedy  that  would  be  applied. 

It  is  precisely  the  same  with  inten»perance.  It  is  in  vain  to  attempt, 
however  eloquently,  to  persuade  people  to  abandon  their  cups.  The  pre- 
disposing cause  of  intemperance  must  be  renwved.  The  atmosphere  must 
be  purified.    Till  this  is  done,  we  citn  have  iu>4iope  beyond  that  of'  snatck- 


6 

ing  here  ontl  there  one  from  ruin,  while  the  mighty  throns;  that  rushes  oo- 
wardto  the  drunkard's  grave,  becomes  every  year  larger  and  larger. 

In  this  address  I  shall  attempt  to  give  you,  in  the  plainest  language  pos- 
sible, the  cause  of  intemperance  in  our  countr}',  and  point  out  what  I 
deem  the  only  effectual  means  of  staying  its  progress.  If  in  doing  this  I 
shall  advance  opinions  which  to  some  of  you  may  appear  new  and  start- 
ling, I  claim  for  mj'self  the  indulgence  which  is  due  to  every  honest  effort 
to  do  good,  •  ^ 

I  shall  lay  it  down  as  an  incontrovertible  proposition,  that  intemperance 
arises  from  the  mis-direction  of  one  of  the  noblest  propensities  of  our  nature; 
and  Uiat  propensity  is  the  love  of  excitement.  I  repeal:  Intemperance  arwM 
from  the  mis-direction  of  one  of  the  noblest  propensities  of  our  nature;  and 
that  propensity  is  the  love  of  excitement. 

The  love  of  excitement  glows  with  more  or  less  intensity  in  every  Rumati 
bosom.  It  was  implanted  there  by  the  Creator  to  impel  us  onward  to  the 
performance  of  all  that  is  great  and  goodj  It  gives  us  an  ardent.,  a  long- 
ing desire  to  he  better  and  happier  than  we  now  are.  No  human  being 
however  exalted  may  be  his  rank  in  life,  or  however  numerous  may  be  the 
means  of  enjoyment  that  cluster  around  him — no  human  being  is  contented 
with  his  present  condition.  The  love  of  excitement  burns  in  his  bosom^ 
and  he  desires,  ardt!ntly  dejires,  by  some  means  or  other,  to  relieve  his 
mind  from  the  weariness  and  disgust  which  the  same  unvarying  round  of 
duties  and  pleasures  ever  produce.  Who  is  there  that  has  not  at  times 
been  ready  to  exclaim  with  Hamlet : 

'How  weary,  sta.fe,  flat,  and  unproHtable 
Seem  to  me  all  the  uses  of  this  world.'' 

•  His  love  of  excitement  is  manifested  in  a  thousand  different  forms,  as 
variant  as  the  character  of  individuals.  The  Athenians  gratified  this 
propensity  by  spending  all  their  leisure  time  in  hearing  or  in  telling  newsf. 
The  ball-room,  the  theatre,  the  race-coursfe  and  the  grocery  are  visited  by 
those  only  who  seek  excitement. 

^he  man  of  cultivated  mind  feels  as-  powerfulJy  as  does  the  unlettered 
clown,  the  iove  of  excitement.      He  too,  seeks   enjoyrnent  such  as  the' 
ceaseless  labor  and  toil  of  every  day  life  do?3-not  a;Tord,  but  hj  seeks  it 
from  sources  that  are  closed  against  the  ignorant. 

The  man  who?e  mind  is  highly  cultivated  and  wliose  moral  principles 
have  been  trained  aright,  has  before  him  a  broad  field  upon  which  he  can 
give  a  loose  reign  to  that  impulse  with  benefit  to  himself  and  the  human 
race.  He  can  gratify  the  love  of  excitement  by  filling  the  important  offi- 
ce* of  his  country — 5y  leading  her  armies  on  the  battle-field — by  direct- 
ing public  opinion  through  the  press — defeniling  the  rights  of  his  fellow 
^citizens  at  the  bar,  or  by  engagiug  in  Other  labors'calculated  to  promote 
the  great  interests  of  the  age. 

Should  none  of  these  broa<ler  fields  be  open  to  the  man  of  cultivated 
mind,  he  has  stiii  the  unfailing  rcso-.Tceof  BOOKS.-  With  </jejf,  Avhec 
wearied  with  the  dull  cares  of  thi*  lifi;  and  anxious  'or  Jiigho^  enioyment, 
he  can  gratify,  to  its  fullest  e«kteQt,  thq  love  of  excite^Rt.  By  means  of 
bpokthe  can  travel  back  t©  tht  very  commencement  of  time,  and.  Bee  the 


soJid  earth,  at  the  "Ftai"  of  C^mnipotence,  slowly  emerge  from  the  dark  and 
silent  chaos  over  which  the  Holy  Spirit  had  spread  its  hovering  winfjs.— ^ 
Descending  down  the  long  track  of  ages,  he  c^n  trace  the  rise  and  fall  of 
mighty  empires  tiuit  in  quick  succession  have  risen  to  wealth  and  power^ 
declined,  and  in  their  turn,  fallen  and  every  vestige  of  their  former  grand- 
ure  disappeared  forever.  Ho  can  follow  the  vvarriorsof  the  early  ages  over 
their  battle-fields — stand  with  Leonidas  in  the  immortal  straits  of  Ther- 
mopylae— walk  with  Plato  in  the  groves  of  Academus — listen  to  the  death- 
less song  of  Homer — or  follow  the  adventurous  voyager  in  his  perilous 
circumnavigation  of  the  globe.  If  at  any  time  his  mind  craves  still  higher 
excitement  than  this  affords  him,  he  can  find  it  in  the  regions  of  fiction, 
where  poetry  and  romance  have  credited  a  world  of  their  own. 

When  such  means  of  enjoyment  are  placed  within  bis  reach,  he  has  no 
induc'ement  to  degrade  his  very  nature  by  resorting  to  debasing  practices. 

No :  "  ,i 

The  highborn  soul  disdains  to  rest 
Her  heaven-aspiiing  wini*  beneath  ' 

Hernalive  quarry-.    When  tir'ed 
Of  eaith  and  this  diurnal  scene,  she  mounts  aloft. 

The  man  whose  mind  is  uncultivated,  and  whose  moral  principles  have 

not  been  trained  aright,  feels,,  like  all  others,  the  love  of  excitemeet — the 

desire  of  higher  enjoyment,  but   he  has  none  of  these  means  of  gratifying 

that  propensity.    Too  often  does  he  find  that  the  only  method  by  which  ho 

can  readily  escape  from  weariness  of  soul  is,  in  the  language  of  an  eminent 

poet  to 

•  Try  Circes  arts  and  in  fhe  tempting 
J!i>Wl  of  poisoned  Nectar,  sweet  oblivion 
Swill. 

Then  when  he  has  imbibed  the  intoxicating  draught,  he  feels  himself  for  a 
time  lapped  in  Eljsium.  Every  thing  around  hiaiis  changed,  :ind  he  him- 
self is  a  new  being.  The  world  is  no  longer  the  dreary  prison-house,  nor 
life  the  weary  Iqad  it  w.is  a  short  time  before,  for  the  fumes  of  alcohol  have 
invested  them  with  the^radicnt  hues  of  paradise.  His  langor  and  discon- 
tent have  (led.  Hope,  and  happiness,  and  joy,  havo  tlung  around  him  tffeir 
brightest  hafo,     ,  ' 

A  few  hours 'pass  by,  anS  not  only  has  this  scene  of  brilliant  hopes  and 
ovijoyment  faded  awa'j',  but  his  feelings  have  become  ten-fold  more  dark 
and  cheerless  than  they  were  before.  To  escape  these  feelings  he  resorts 
again,  and  again,  with  increasing  frequency,  to  the  intoxicating  cup. 

I  trast  that  all  v/ho'have  done  me  the  honor  of  listening  to  me  thus  fat'., 
will  agree  with  me,  when  I  lay  it  down  as  my  second  proposition,  that 
the  onlj-^  successful  means  that  can  be  adopted  to  stop  the  progress  of  in- 
temperance, is  to  render  our  countrymen  capable  of  gratifying  the  love  of 
excitement  by  sonw  ol^lo^  means  than  a  resort  to  intoxicating  drinks.  A^ 
I  have  already  said,  you  gannot  extinguish  the  love  of  excitement,  fop  jt 
is  a  part  of  our  nature.,  an;i«was  implanted  there  for  a  high  and  holy  pur- 
pose.* Butyou  car  guide  it  aright.  You  can  train  the  youth  of  our  coun- 
try in  such  a-matincr  that  instead  of  seeking  the  grati^cationof  this  pro- 
pensity in  the  d^si^ng  use  of  alcohol,  (hey  ghai!  seek  it  from  the  high  and 
honorable  career  of  virtup. 


r'% 


In  those  countries  of  Europe  whera  fclio  great  mas?  of  the  peoplie  are? 
Iidd  in  vassalage — whero  every  ambition — every  thou2;ht,  every  emotion 
of  the  soul  is  narrowed  down  to  the  sinjfie  enquiry,  bow  they  shall  obtain 
•  the  scanty  food  necesia ry  to  support  life  for  each  passing  day — in  such  a 
country  I  grant  that  it  u  p03nble,  quite  possible  to  keep  the  people  from 
habits  of  intemperTmce  without  cultivating  their  minds.  But  here,  where 
man  is  free  as  the  air  he  breathes^wheraHhepursi^it'of  his  own  happine?"* 
is  otnong  his  inalienable  rights,  you  must  educate.  You  must  give  tjo  our 
youth,  not  only  the  ability',  biit  the  inclination  to  pursue  an  honorable  ca- 
reer, or  ruin  will  be  their  inevitable  doom. 

There  is  no  country  on  the  habitable  globe  where  it  is  so  vitally  impor- 
tant to  direct  aright  the  love  of  excitement,  as  in  these  United  States.  It 
is  because  there  is  no  country  on  the  habitable  globe  where  there  are  so 
many  things  to  develope  and  call  into  active  operation  the  love  of  ex- 
citement. Every  thing  around  is  calculated  to  awaken  all  the  energies  oi 
the  human  mind.  , 

The  eyes  of  the  young  American  open  upon  a  realm,  broader  than  ever 
acknowledged  the  sway  of  the  Imperial  Ccesars.  The  Easrle,  the  symbol 
of  his  country,  rests  one  wing  on  the  shores  of  the  Atlantic,  while  the 
other  dips  in  the  waters  of  the  Pacific.  From  the  cold  lak^s  of  the  north, 
in  whose  zenith  stands  the  frozen  constellation  of  the  Bear,  down  to  the 
siinnjr  climes  of  Louisiana  and  Florida — all  this  wide  region  is 
^*  "Tfie  land  of  the  free  and  the  Home  of  the  brave." 

.  Nature,  too,  has  here  conducted  all  her  w.ork  upon  a  scale  of  grandeur 
and  magnificence  ealculalated  to  impress,  deeply  impress,  the  heart  of  the 
j,oung  American.  Our  mountaiyis^  lift  their  bald  summits  high,  up  into  the 
cold  b'eak  atmosphere.  Their  snowy  tops  look  ^far  down  upon  the  storra 
clouds  that  begirt  them.  Our  rivers  roll,  for  thousands  of  miles  througli 
regions  whose  natural  tesourc^es  are  almost  boundless.  Along  all  these 
giant  streams,  and  alojig  their,  innuqierable  branches,  commerce  is  pour- 
iiig  a  ceaseless  tide  oC  wealth.  Steamboats  are  night  and  day  traversing 
rivers,  and  towns  are  springing  u|>  along  their  banks,  which  but  a  (evr 
yearssince  were  hardly  known  except  to  the.swarthy  Indian.  Our  Lakes 
are  inland  seas  upon  which  fleets  have  fought  and  conquered.  c 

Our  population  during  the  brief  period  of  our  national  existence  has 
rncreased  from  three  to  twenty  miliioas.    Emigration  is  still  rolling  on- 
ward  with  a  wider  and  broader  current.      Already   has  it   peopled  the 
mighty  west  with  millions  of  hardy  freemen,  ai»d  is  aow  sweeping  through 
.all  the  gorges  of  thefllocky  Mountains,  and  will  rest  only  on  the  shores  of 
^    the  Pacific. 

If  our  population  continues  to  increase  in  the  same  ratio  that  it  has 
hitherto  done,  within  the  life-time  of  many  now  I'viug,  our  Republic,  will 
contain  two  hundred  millions  oftnhabitants.  That  it  will  far  exceed  that 
^number,  no  one  who  can  bring  the  subject  to  the  test  qF  arithmetical  cal- 
culation^  will  dare  deny. 

How  inspiring  to  the  young  and  ardent  mind  must  be  the  reflectioathat 
witbia  &  space  of  time  comparatively  so  short,  the  flag  of  our  country 


Will  throw  its  starry  folds  over  two  millions  of  Atnaricans  who  will  speak 
tiie  same  language,  read  th«  siirue  books,  iind  ready  at  the  the  firat  call  of 
their  country  to  present  their  bosoms  as  a  bulwark  for  tht?  defence  of  lib- 
erty. 

Ji  very  page  of  bis  country's  history  is  likewise  calculated  to  excite  the 
American  youth  and  inspira  him  with  ardent  emotiorls.  He  follows,  iu 
imagination  the  little  May-flower,freighted  with  the  first  band  of  Pilgrims, 
who  spurning  oppression  ?:(»ught  a  home  in  the  new  world.  Three  times 
does  he  see  the  full  moon  stand  over  the  m  ist  oP  that  gallant  vessel,  while 
she  is  plowing  her  perilous  way  over  the  broad  Atlantic.  These  Pilgrims 
were  men  of  iron  moilld,  and  of  stern  piety.  Not  a  single  heart  in  that 
ship  quailed.  Every  morning  and  evening,  their  hymn  of  praise  mingled 
its  thrilling  cadence  with  the  wiid  roar  of  the  ocean.  Woman,  was  there, 
but  she  had  exchanged  the  shrinking  timidity  of  her  sex,  for  the  sublime 
resolve,  calmly  to  meet,  by  the  side  of  those  she  loved,  whatever  of  peril  ' 
or  death  might  await  them. 

Descending  down  to  a  later  period  of  American  history,  his  heart  glows 
with  still  deeper,  and  deeper  emotions,  as  he  approaches  the  period  when 
our  gallant  fathers  in  defence  of  their  rights,  hurled  back  the  gauntlet  of 
defiance  in  the  face  of  Britain.  With  breathless  interest  the  young  Amer- 
ican follows  the  patriots  of  the  revolution,  from  battle-field  to  battle-field, 
through  the  arduous  struggle  of  seven  long  years  of  blood.  When  at  last 
he  sees  his  country  free  and  independent — her  victorious  banner  waving  ^ 
proudly  over  a  new  Republic,  his  heart  glows  with  fervid  emotions,  and 
with  conscious  pride  he  exclaims,  /,  too,  am  an  Jlmerican — /  am  ihc  eouw 
iryman  of  Washington. 

In  every  field  where  mind  meets  mind,  whether  it  be  in  literature,  in  the 
sciences,  or  in  the  arts,  he  sees  his  country  victorious.  Our  lawyers,  our 
8tatesmen,ouT  scholars,  our  divines,  bear  off  tho  palm  ot  superior  mqrit.  • 
In  the  ponderous  quarto  volumes  of  Webster's  Dictionary,  we  have  had 
the  honor  of  giving  to  England  herself— proud,  haugb.ty  England,  the  best 
standard  in  existence  of  lier  own  language. 

Even  the  war  of  the  elerfienls,  talks  to  the  young  American  of  the  glori- 
ous achievements  of  Jiis  country.  Wlfen  the  forky  lightnings  stream 
athAvart  the -heavens'— when  the  rolling  thunder,  peal  on  peal,  seems  to 
fock  the  solid  glob>j,  down  to  its  very  core — this  is  a  moment  of  high  ex- 
citement to  the  American  youth.  He  proudly  casts  his  eye  upon  the  tall, 
taper  rod,  which  the  American  Franklin  has -ent  up  into  the  heavens, 
and  conquered  the  warring  thunder-;bolts  on  their  owji  battle-field. 

Other  nations  celebrate  the  victories  of  their  great  wen,  by  the  discharge 
ofeonnon,  but  the  achievements  of  our  Franklin,  are  proclaimed  by  the 
tbft  roar  of  HEAVEN'S  OWN  A'RTILLER Y^. 

But  this  is  not  all: — Every  olfice  within  the  gift  of  the  people,  from  that  '_ 
of  Presidcnt'of  the  United  States,   down  to  that  of  the  humblest  village 
majistratc,  is  open  to  thi;  young  American,  and  fires  his  ambition.     Here,- 
too,  every  noble  ciTort,  c.Jcilated  to  benefit  mankind,  presents'to-him  a 
broad  field  up:)n  which  to  run  his  career  of  honorable  enterprise. 

Anil  now,  i  would  ask  this  audience  to  pause  and  reflect  for  a  moment, " 


9 

Hnd  then  tell  me,  what  might  we  reasomtbl j  expect  would  be  the  state  of 
society,  in  a  country  like  ours,  where  every 'individual,  from  the  hour  of 
his  birth,  to  that  of  his  death,  is  constantly  »urrounded  by  so  many  exci- 
ting influences'*  Would  you  not  expect  that  the  edwcaied  class,  whosr 
minds  have  been  properly  cultivated,  wouW  engage  with  ardor,  and  en- 
ergy in  every  honorable  pursuit  of  life— whilfr  those  whose  minds  had  been 
left  uncultivated,  would  rush  headlong,  into  vice  and  intemperance?  That 
such  is  the  result,  no  proof  need  be  exhibited. 

In  no  country  upon  which  the  light  of  heaven  shines,  is  there  so  much 
active  intelligence — such  a  spirit  of  enterprise,  so  much  effort  to  promote 
the  best  interests  of  the  human  race,  as  in  these  United  States.  And  this 
is  precisely  because  the  educated  class  have  had  their  minds  powerfull/ 
awakened,  and  every  faculty  called  into  action^  by  the  exciting  scenes  in 
which  our  countrymen  Tire  placed. 

Cast  your  eye  over  the  habitable  globe,  and  shew  me,  if  you  can,  a  sin- 
gle region  that  does  not  exhibit  traces  of  American  enterprise.  There  i» 
not  a  river,  lake,  or  ocean,  from  pole  to  pole,  upon  which  our  flag  has  not 
been  unfurled. 

Wherever  wealth,  or  fame  can  be  won,  there  you  find  an  American.-^ 
His  efforts  are  still  more  freely  given  to  tho  sacred  cause  of  disinterested 
benevolence.  Go  to  the  regions  where  man  is  most  degraded — where  the 
image  of  God  is  most  defaced  by  degrading  superstitions,  and  barbarous 
rites.  There  will  you  see  our  countrymen,  toiling  in  the  holy  work  of 
raising  up  these  dark,  and  benighted  pagans,  to  the  high  standard  of  moral 
and  intellectual  existence. 

Turn  your  eye  to  the  distant  plains  of  Hindosfan  where  hundreds  of 
thousands  have  assembled  to  drag  the  pon  ierous  car  of  Juggernaut,  or 
perish  beneath  its  wheels.  Who  is  that  palc-faoed  man,  of  a  different 
race  from  these  dark  idolaters?  He  is  actively,  and  successfully  engaged 
in  distributing  the  hible  among  them,  and  has  already  induced  thousand* 
to  abandon  idolatry?  He  came  from  a  countrv  far  towards  the  setting  son 
— he  is  an  American.  Thereis  a  man  of  distinguiseed  learning  and  talents 
who  has  devoted  the  best  years  of  his  life  to  the  Burmans,  and  given  the 
bible  to  the  millions  of  that  nation,  in  their  own  language.  It  i^  the 
American  J udson,  whom  the  Karensmoat  emphatioaily  ca..l,^^Jesiu  Ckrittt 
wan." 

Wherever  light  is  to  be  diffused,  and  debased  human  nature  is  to  be  ele- 
vated, there  do  you  find  our  countrymen.  They  stand  in  the  first  ranks 
of  every  noble  and  generous  enterprise.  They  have  planted  the  banner 
of  tho  cross  in  the  deadliest  regions  of  the  torrid  zone.  They  have  made 
the  Rose  of  Sharon  expand  its  blossoms,  on  the  snowy  plains  of  Greenland 
— in  regions  locked  iu  eternal  frost. 

But  alas!  if  the  proposition  wiiich  I  have  laid  down,  is  true — that  in- 
temperance among  us  is  owing  to  the  mis-direction  of  the  love  of  excite- 
ment, we  might  aUo  expect  tofiud  thousands  among  the  uneducated  classes 
who  find  no  means  of  gratifying  that  propensity,  except  in  the  intoxica- 
ting cup. 

It  is  hsinU J  possible  to  please  a  human  being  under  circumstances  more 


unfavorable  to  the  practice  of  virtue — more  likely  to  lead  to  intemper- 
ance, than  is  placed  the  imeducated  American.  While  every  thing 
around  him  is  calculated  to  excite  his  mind  to  the  highest  pitch,  he  is  cut 
off  fromen;5a;jing  in  any  of  the  pursuits  of  life  that  require  education. — 
He  may  i'eel  Ih  it  he  poscsses  natural  abilities  of  the  most  brilliant -kind, 
yet  they  are  of  no  avail.  Without  education,  he  can  nei  ther  take  a  stand 
in  the  halh  of  legislation — lead  the  armies  of  his  country,  or  fill  with 
honor,  even  tha  humblest  office.  He  is  as  effectually  debarred  from  enga- 
ging in  an)'  of  the  numerous  pursuits  of  life  that  require  education,  as  if 
he  lived  unJor  the  most  despotic  jjooernment.  Even  Books,  that  unfailing 
source  of  intellectual  enjoyment — that  nurse  of  every  virtue — books,  are 
to  him  asealed  fountain. 

\Vhere shall  such  a  mm  seek  for  enjoyment?  Where  shall  he  find  the 
gratification  of  that  lo.vo  of  excitement  that  burnsSn  every  human  bosom? 
Is  it  surprising  that  ho  tlics  for  solace  to  the  poisoned  cup — that  he  resorts 
to  the  grocery  ?  Such  a  course  is  almost  inevitable.  Ho  has  been  born» 
and  raised  up  in  a  state  of  society  where  every  thing  around  him  produces 
excitement,  and  he  is  deprived,  by  ignorance,  of  nearly  every  means  of 
gratifying  that  propensity,  except  by  intemperance.  Can  we  reasonably 
expect  a  difforeut  result?    ^ 

And  now,  I  wish  to  impress,  deeply  impress,  upon  the  mind  of  every 
iidividual  present,  that  in  a  country,  surrounded  with  so  many  causes  of 
excitement  as  exist  in  these  United  States,  there  is  no  effectual  means  o{l 
preventing  vica  and  intemperance,  but  to  give  to  every  child  in  this 
republic  a  sound  education.  Do  Ihis,  and  you  will  purify  the  atmosphere, 
and  remove  tlie  predisposing  cause  of  intemperance.  Vou  must  afford  to 
evfry  child  such  an  education  as  will  enable  him  to  discharge  th«  duties 
"«of  an  Amsrican  citizen,  and  find  in  intellectual  pursuits,  such  enjoyment! 
as  will  leave  him  no  inducement  to  resort  to  aleoliol. 

Till  this  is  done,  but  very  little  is  effected  to  relieve  our  country  of  tha 
army  of  drunkards  that  every  year  descend  to  the  grave, — to  hear,  when 
ihey  have  passed  its  dark  portal,  the  appalling  sentence,  "JVb  drunkard 
ran  enter  the  kingdom  of  heaven.''^ 

Eloquent  appeals  may  possibly  save  here,  and  there,  a  victim,  but  in- 
temperance will  contin  le  to  rage,  and  offer  its  annual  sacrifice,  till  the 
atmosphere  is  purified,  and  the  predisposing  cause  is  removed,  by  universal 
ediuation.  You  have  no  alternative  between  building  school  houses  or 
penitentiaries.  You  must  either  restrain  the  youth  of  our  country,  by 
giving  them  a  good  education,  or  you  will  be  compelled  to  chain  them 
down  to  the  cold  damp  fl^oor  of  a  dungeon. 

A  solemn  duty  devolves  upon  every  parent  and  upon  every  citizen  of 
this  republic.  It  is  not  enough  that  you  teach  your  child  that  alcohol,  in 
all  its  forms,  is  a  deadly  poison.  It  is  not  enough  that  you  induce  him 
to  sign  a  temperance  pledge.  You  must  educate  him — youmust  edu-^ 
cate  him.  If  his  education  extends  no  farther  than  to  give  him  a  taste  for 
.<ound  reading,  you  have, even  in  that,  a  better  safe-guard  for  your  child 
— a  surer  guarantee  that  he  will  not  become  a  drunkard,  than  all  the  tem- 
perance pledges  thut  were  ever  signad,  could  afford  you  without  it. 


n 

f'la  such  a  coantry  as  ours,  to  ne^^lect  the  education  of  a  child,  is  a 
crime  of  a  deeper  die  than  the  Hindoo  mother  commits,  who  throws  her 
struggling  infant  into  the  Ganges,  to  be  devoured,  alive,  by  the  Crocodiles. 
She,  poor,  benighted  Pagan,  only  sacrificns  its  life,  while  the  Americans 
parent,  by  leaving  his  child  ignorant,  offers  up  its  hopes  for  time,  for  eter* 
nity,  upon  an  altar  more  bloody  than  that  of  Moloch.  ^ 

And  yet,  even  in  these  United  States,  instances  are  not  unfrequent,  ioii 
which  a  parent,  to  save  a  few  dollars,  will  commit  the  edncatioa  of  his', 
children  to  incompetent  hands.     He  will  try  to  excuse  this  treachery  to i^ 
the  best  interests  of  his  own  offspring,  by  saying  that  his  child  is  so  young-^^ 
his  education  so  little  advanced,  that  a  teacher  of  very  inferior  qualifica- 
tions is  sudioient  for  his  instruction.     Such  reasoning,  common  as  it  is, 
ought  to  betray  its  own  absurdity.     It  is  just  as  if  the  parent  should  say, 
I  have  a  child  that  is  nearly  or  quite  blind;  therefore,  a  man  who  can 
hardly  see,  himself,  is  capable  of  guiding  his  footsteps.     On  the  contrary, 
the  more  ignorant  and  uneducated  is  your  child,  the  more  highly -impor- 
tant it  is  that  he  has  a  competent,  a  talented  instructer. 

To  train  up  a  young  American — to  qualify  him  to  discharge  with  abil- 
ity the  responsible  duties  that  will  devolve  upon  him,  as  a  citizen  of  these 
United  States— fAw  is  the  task  of  a  teacher  of  youth.  No  office  can  be 
more  responsible  than  this — no  other  is  more  arduous.  There  is  none  that 
requires  a  higher  grade  of  talents — none  that  demands  more  experience. 
None  oug^A^  to  be  more  respectable.  Can  there  possibly  be  found,  any 
way  in  which  a  parent  can  so  profitably  expend  a  share  of  his  income,  as 
in  educating  the  children  who  will  bear  his  own  name  through  life,  and 
till  his  place  in  society,  when  his  head  lies  low. 

To  the  friends  of  temperance,  education  offers  the  only  ground  of  hope.' 
It  is  the  Mount  Arorarat  upon  which  must  rest  the  ark  of  American  liber- 
ty. There  is  not  another  spot  visible  above  the  wide  worla  of  waters," ' 
upon  which  the  dove  of  hope  can  rest  the  sole  of  her  foot.  I  am  not  un- 
aware that  some  few  will  deny  this  They  will  tell  you,  perhaps,  of  a 
man  who  was  distinguished  as  a  statesman,  a  lawyer,  a  physician,  who, 
notwithstanding,  went  down  into  a  drunkard's  grave. 

To  such  I  rfsply,  that  a  man  may  possess  a  large  amount  of  learning, 
and  yet  not  be  well  educated.  He  may  read  the  Illiad  of  Homer  and 
other  classics,  with  fluency,  may  have  studied  the  Mathematics,  till,  like 
Newton,  he  can  calculate,  to  a  second,  the  return  of  a  comet  from  its 
journey  of  centuries  into  the  fields  of  illimitable  space.  He  may  have 
all  this  amount  of  learnihg,  and  yet,  not  be  well  educated.  Ifhiswiim/, 
itself,  has  not  been  properly  trained  and  diciplined — if  his  moral  faculties 
have  not  been  cultivated, strengtheiied,  invigorated,  then  has  he  failed  to 
acquire  the  most  important  element  of  human  education.  He  resembles 
a  splendid  vessel,  launched  upon  the  wide  weltering  ocean,  with  numerortf 
sails  spread  to  the  breeze,  with  a  rich  cargo  on  board,  but  with  no  helm, 
and  no  compass  to  direct  its  course.  The  very  means  that  would  otherwise 
have  given  to  that  vessel  a  prosperous,  and  a  brilliant  Toyage,  all  hasten 
«n  its  shipwreck. 

To  THE  MEMBERS  OF  THE  CLINTON  TEMPERANCE  SOCIE- 


461509       . .     •  1^ 


m 

TY,  and  to  its  friends,  permit  me  to  offer  a  tew  closing  remarks.  You 
have  labored  long  and  zealously  in  this  sacred  cause.  Calumny  itseh  can 
ascribe  to  you  no  other  motive  but  a  disinterested  desire  of  promoting  the 
best  interests  of  your  fellow  beings.  Great  will  be  your  reward,  even 
should  you  fail  of  accomplishing  but  a  small  share  of  the  good  you  would 
wish.  In  the  last  final  hour — when  the  sands  of  life  are  running  low,  the 
recollection  of  past  years  will  throng  thick  around  your  memory.  In  that 
folemn  hour,  the  remembrance  of  a  single  disinterested  effort  to  do  good 
to  others,  will  afford  you  sweeter  comfort  and  consolation,  than  would 
*he  proudi-st  trophy  thatwas  ever  won  upon  the  fields  of  fame.  Yon 
have  abundant  reasons  to  rejoice,  and  take  conrage.  In  no  state  in  the 
Union  are  the  people  more  willing  to  make  great  sacrifices  for  the  edu- 
cation of  their  children,  than  in  Louisiana.  A  new  day  is  about  to  dawn 
upon  tiiis  patriotic  state.  We  see  it  in  the  efforts  that  are  making  to 
place  the  blessings  of  education  within  the  reach  of  every  child  in  the 
state.  The  principle  that  education  is  one  of  the  inalienable  rights  of  the 
citizens,  is  engrafted  into  your  new  constitution.  The  time  is  at  hand 
when  this  sacred  provision  shall  be  carried  fully  into  operation.  How- 
bright  will  be  the  destiny  of  this  lovely  region,  the  native  land  of  the 
orange  and  the  magnolia,  when  every  child  in  the  state  shall  be  qualified 
to  discharge,  ably  discharge,  the  high  and  responsible  duties  of  an  Ameri- 
can citizen.  Who  shall  say  that  the  Great  Ruler  of  human  events,  by 
making  the  people  of  this  state  take  the  lead  in  the  work  of  education,  has 
not  designed  to  accomplish  some  signal  good,  that  shall  not  only  exert  a 
decided  influence  upon  the  cause  of  temperance,  but,  also,  upon  the  des- 
tinies of  the  American  ^people?  Spread  before  you  the  map  of  these 
United  States,  and  you  will  see,  Pt  a  glance,  that  Louisiana  is  the  depot 
of  the  great  valley  oC  the  Mississippi"  th«  keystone  in  the  arch  of  the 
mighty  west.  Go  to  the  remotest  settlement  of  the  western  states,  and 
you  will  hear  the  enterprising  back-woodsman  talk  of  New  Orleans;  for 
it  is  to  that  town,  and  to  the  planters  of  this  state,  though  two  thous- 
and miles  distant,  that  he  lopks  for  a  market,  for  the  products  which  his 
labor  produces. 

How  incalculably  great  must  one  day  become  the  influence  of  Louisiana. 
When  all  her  sons  shall  be  enlightened,  educated — though  political  dema- 
gogues might  convulse  o^Aer  states  of  the  Union,  yet  here,  all  would  b* 
calm  as  a  summer  morning,  and  your  citizens  would  rise,  in  the  majesty 
of  freemen,  roll  back  the  dark  iide  of  ignarance,  and  save  the  libertiei 
of  the  American  people. 

Friends  of  Temperance:  A  few  weeks  since,  when  the  war  cry  of  your 
country,  calling  for  aid,  resounded  through  the  ttreets  of  this  village— ia 
an  instant,  every  sword  leaped  from  its  scabbard,  and  a  hundred  bosoms 
were,  in  a  moment,  bared  for  the  battle.  .  Display  the  same  noble  spirit  in 
the  cause  of  Temperance  and  victory  is  yours. 

FINIS.  -    ■•^,^^^^■.■ 


THfi  LffiRARY  ; 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  '.,MV^ 


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